Perfect chocolate chip cookies every time and they’re ready in just 20 minutes. No chilling or softening butter required! (This post updated in April 2018 to include a video!)
I know. The internet does not need another chocolate chip cookie recipe, right? I mean, who do I think I am showing up here and claiming to have perfected such a simple cookie.
Well, I’m a person who literally has spent years searching for and experimenting with cookie recipes that proclaim to be “the best.” I ate a lot of cookies that were good. Many that were great. Not so much on the perfect though.
I mean, some of them were super close, but they required hours of chilling and I’m sorry, when I want a cookie, I want a gosh darn cookie. I don’t want a cookie in an hour. I don’t want a cookie tomorrow. I want a cookie NOW.
So, I set out to make homemade chocolate chip cookies that didn’t need to be chilled. In doing so, I came across a recipe on Allrecipes that calls for melted butter and no chilling. Say what? That’s basically the opposite of every good cookie recipe, but what the heck. Doesn’t hurt to try.
After all, my dad broke all the rules with his famous homemade biscuits, so maybe breaking the rules is the way to go with cookies too.
I changed the recipe up a bit each time I tried it, writing down what changes made things better and what made things worse. I finally ended up with this recipe.
Why these are perfect:
The cookies are huge. I don’t want to eat five small cookies. I want to eat one big cookie. It’s just my preference. Mostly because bigger cookies allow for more softer, chewier middles.
These are soft. Like, soft soft. Super soft. The edges don’t really get crisp, so if you’re looking for crispy edges, keep moving. These things are soft all the way around and all the way through. I love it!
No chilling! You go from cookie craving to cookie making to cookie eating all in just 20 minutes.
No pudding mix in these guys! I like pudding cookies just fine, you guys. They’re good! But I don’t always have pudding mix on hand and I also think they taste not quite as “classic” as a cookie without pudding.
The butter gets melted! What’s the big deal about melting the butter? Well, that means you don’t have to panic because you forgot to leave butter out on the counter to come to room temperature. You don’t have to attempt microwaving it for 8.342 seconds, because any shorter leaves butter that’s too hard, but any longer leaves butter that is melted through. Just melt the dang butter and be done with it!
It’s a small batch! Okay, okay. This one could go either way. I mean, I like having a cookie jar full of cookies, for sure. But I really like my cookies fresh from the oven! This recipe just makes 9 cookies, so you’ll still have a few leftover for tomorrow, but maybe the next day you can make a fresh batch and get them fresh from the oven. It’s the best of both worlds.
Anyway, I am super curious to know if my homemade chocolate chip cookies are also YOUR perfect chocolate chip cookies! Please oh please, give these a try and report back!
And, in case you’re wondering, I also have a recipe for perfect homemade brownies and perfect homemade blondies on the blog! There are some pretty perfect monster cookies, too! Oh, hey, there’s brookies too!
Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies in 20 minutes!
Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon espresso powder, optional
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 2/3 cup flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips, any variety
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add butter to a small saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until melted. Alternately, melt in the microwave. (Optional step for extra caramel-y flavor: Brown the butter! Keep cooking after the butter has melted. The butter will foam and bubble as it cooks. Once the liquid becomes golden brown remove from the heat and add to the bowl of a stand mixer and let cool for 2 minutes.)
- Add the brown sugar, white sugar, and espresso powder to the butter and beat until well combined.
- Beat in the vanilla and egg until just combined.
- Gradually pour in the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips by hand, reserving a few to press onto the tops of the cookie dough, if desired.
- Portion into 9 large balls of dough and place on a large baking sheet. Dot the tops with the remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake for 11 minutes exactly. Cookies will still be slightly underdone when you remove them from the oven. Do not overbake. Let sit on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack or eating.
Anna Adams says
I doubled the recipe to make a large cookie cake. It worked perfectly. You will need to up the bake time. Best cookie cake I have ever made.
Karly says
Sounds delicious!
Denise Grandstaff says
I just made these and they were quick, easy and delicious!!!
Karly says
So glad you loved them!
Beth says
How long did you bake it? What kind of pan did you use?
Meagan Koonce says
Do you have a preference for the kind of brown sugar. I know some recipes call for dark, some light, and some half and half.
Karly says
I prefer dark brown sugar pretty much always, but any will work fine. 🙂
Kindra Whetstone says
In the video you posted with this recipe is the butter browned or just melted? I made your white chocolate xmas cookies and I just melted butter and didn’t brown it and they were AMAZING! so was wondering which i should do for this recipe?
Thanks
Karly says
The video doesn’t show it browned – I’ve gotten lazy and don’t usually brown the butter anymore. It does give the dough a bit more flavor, but these are our favorites with or without browning. 🙂
Mary says
Best cookies I ever made and so easy!!
Kindra says
Hi I was wondering is it best to use semi sweet chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips??
Thanks!
Karly says
Whichever you prefer will work great here. I usually use milk because that’s what my family likes, but I prefer semi-sweet or dark.
Jen says
OMGoodness! We are chocolate chip cookie snobs, I must admit. We like ours thick and gooey and these were delicious!! My go to recipe calls for chilling the dough and sometimes I just don’t have that kind of time. When I saw that yours didn’t call for chill time I knew I had to try them. They were absolutely yummy and came together in no time at all. We gobbled them up! I will be making these again. Thanks for sharing!
Karly says
So glad you gave these a try and loved them!
Sani Hardy says
Thank you for sharing this AMAZING chocolate chip cookie recipe!!! Absolutely the BEST!!
One quick question….
How do you know when the cookie is ready? The first batch seemed a little raw in the middle. The second batch I over baked by 2 minutes. I’m getting ready to make a third batch. The first batch I baked for 12 minutes and that seemed to be perfect. But, is there a tip to know when a thick cookie is done in the middle?
Karly says
Hi there! Glad these were a hit!
I just look for the tops of the cookies to look set. We like cookies that are a bit under baked and really soft in the center, so if they’re just set looking, that usually means they’re perfect for us. They continue setting up as they cool on the cookie sheet.
Teresa Czaja says
I despise coffee. For people who like coffee It’s hard for them to tell if the coffee flavors comes through, because it is not an off flavor to them. Does the espresso flavor come through in these cookies?
Karly says
Leave it out if you don’t like it.
Samantha says
Question: what kind of butter do you use? Salted or unsalted butter?
Karly says
I use salted, but you can use either.
Nancy says
Can I use chocolate chunks and sprinkle sea salt on them? Love how chocolate chunks get more melty and the dough of these look perfect!
Karly says
Yes, that would be fine.
Diane McCorvey says
Can I double the recipe & make 18 cookies?
Karly says
Yep! I think they turn out a little better as a single batch, but you can double them if you don’t want to do two separate batches.
Manyee says
I’m from the UK….do you have the quantities in grams please? Thank you.
Jenny says
Cups are pretty much standard aren’t they? I’m Australian so use the metric system myself, the only thing I decided to convert was the 8 tablespoons to grams and that’s 113.4g. There’s nothing else here that should require conversion, but Google would certainly help you out if you need
Jill says
Do you think it’s necessary to melt the butter on the stove rather than in the microwave?
Karly says
Only if you are browning the butter. If you just melt it, you can use the microwave.
Lori Hamers says
What can be substituted for the espresso powder?
Karly says
You can leave it out entirely if you don’t have it on hand.
Courtney says
Looks like a wonderful recipe and I wish I could have one of those cookies right now! Would coconut sugar work instead of white sugar? 🙂
Karly says
I haven’t tried it with coconut sugar, but it will probably work fine! 🙂
Brandy says
Do you sift your flour? The first time I made these, they were perfect, and I usually sift but cannot remember. The second time I tried a double batch and they came out dry. ?
Karly says
Hi Brandy! I don’t sift my flour. This recipe is finicky when doubling it for some reason. I think that was likely the issue.
Maggie Martin says
It’s 94 degrees here today and I turned on the oven and made a double batch of these cookies, sans the espresso powder, and they are almost gone already! Ooooo, they were/are good!
Thanks Karly and thanks for the 5 hacks!
Maggie
Karly says
You’re welcome, Maggie!! Glad you enjoyed the cookies! 🙂
Faith says
These are wonderful, my sons team always request these for game days!
Marie says
Why do my cookies always spread out so much! Yours are such a perfect little chunky cookie… mine look like they’ve been run over!
Xx
Karly says
Hi Marie! Just to be sure – are you talking about with this recipe? Or with other recipes? Assuming you mean with this recipe, are you sure that you’re measuring properly? You should be using a dry measure for the dry ingredients and spooning it in and then leveling it out.
Mary says
Best cookies I ever made and so easy!!
Karly says
So glad to hear that! 🙂
Maggie Martin says
Update: I made these June 13th and left a comment. I have made them twice a week since, always double the recipe and my hubby and son in law eat them and fight over the last one so I am constantly making these cookies!!! They are that good.
Thanks again Karly!
Maggie
Karly says
Sounds similar to what happens in my house. Luckily, my teenager has the recipe memorized and she makes them for me as soon as we run out. 😉
Cessy Hernandez says
I tried it and yes it’s super soft and super yummy! I’m so glad that I found your blog. Honestly, I searched a lot of best recipes for chocolate chip cookies but the result was always fail but when I tested your recipe last week, I told myself I think I found the PERFECT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES! Now, I’m planning to sell cookies using your recipe and I’m really grateful that you’re sharing your recipe to us. Thank you so much! Much love, Cessy from Philippines 🙂
Dawn-Marie Perry says
Hi im in the uk is baking soda our baking powder and also is it plain flour? Want to try these tonight for our bbq tomorrow x
Karly says
Hi there! I’m not sure what products you have in the UK. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, but not sure what it would be called in the UK. I used plain all-purpose flour. Enjoy!
kinga says
We love these. Had to add a tad more flour. My new go to. Thanks for a great recipe.
Cathy S. says
I made this recipe into 12 large cookies, added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, and cut chips to 3/4 cup. I put 6 cookies per sheet. They baked for 11 minutes, and were slightly gooey in the middle and almost crisp around the edges. Very delicious and quick to make!
Karly says
So glad they were a hit! 🙂
chicook13 says
I just made these again last night & realized I somehow neglected to review them. This recipe is AMAZING! The first time I made them I was skeptical but I had freshly baked cookies out of the oven 30 minutes after I got home from work!!! These are honestly better than most other cookie recipes and they sure are a lot easier! I also love that we only get nine cookies. They’re huge, though, so could definitely make a dozen decent-sized cookies. I haven’t tried that, though. Thanks for this fantastic recipe!!!
Karly says
Thanks for the review! I’m always so excited when people try these cookies – we absolutely love them! 🙂
Mary says
I’m not usually a commenter, but OH MY GOOD GRACIOUS these cookies are the best thing on the Internet. Thank you, thank you, thank you for giving us a failproof recipe!
Karly says
Yay! So glad they were a hit! 🙂
Maggie Martin says
3rd time for commenting on these cookies:
Son in law and grandson introduced these to my great grandson on his 2nd birthday, now I
have to make them 4 times a week! Keep them mixed up in the fridge and as soon as the last one disappears
bake more and mix more dough!
Outstanding recipe
Thanks again and again Karly.
Maggie
Karly says
Aw, I love that! Thanks, Maggie!
Rose says
Do you think you could sub m&ms for all (or part) of the chocolate chips? I wanted to make them a bit more festive for Christmas using the Christmas red & green ones…
Karly says
You totally can! I have a Christmas version here: Christmas Chip Cookies
Karen says
Inexperienced baker here. Is there a difference in the outcome if you melt the butter in the microwave vs on the stove? I assume there is since you have specifically called that out in this recipe and your Christmas sprinkle cookies.
Thanks!
Karly says
Hi Karen! I melt on the stove so that I can let the butter brown, but you can definitely just melt in the microwave. 🙂
Mattie says
To think I wasted all these years on the Tollhouse recipe. Trying to adapt it so I had soft chewy non-frisbee looking cookies. No more!
This recipe was great! I portioned mine slightly smaller and had 15 to a batch. Perfect, soft, chewy grandma looking cookies that were still soft, the next day. This one is a keeper! Thanks for sharing!
Karly says
So glad you gave them a try! 🙂
Desirae Sauter says
Can I use toffee bits in this dough instead of chocolate chips?
Karly says
Sure!
Karen says
This recipe is awesome! I’ll admit I was very skeptical at first….melted butter AND no chilling sounded like a disaster and flat/greasy cookies waiting t happen. But, I gave them a try and boy I’m sure glad I did! Easiest cookies I ever made and easily make it into my top 3 chocolate chip cookie recipes. Turned out perfect! I made them two days in a row, and my whole family LOVED them!! Thank you!
Karly says
Ahh, I love to hear that!! I know it breaks all the rules, but they just WORK! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them!
Heather says
Made these today!! I didn’t have enough chocolate chips so I added in some peanut butter chocolate chips that we bought a while back. Sooooo good. Cookies turned out absolutely perfect which is seriously saying something for me!!!! My daughter just turned one on Monday during this quarantine and I couldn’t get her to eat one bite of her cake that day but she ate these today!! So I know they were good 🙂 Thank you!!!!
Karly says
Yay! I’m so glad they were a success! 🙂
Victoria says
I’ve been searching for the perfect cookie recipe and I’ve got to say.. this is IT. So extremely easy to make and the thickness & softness is to die for. So good!!
Karly says
Yay! So glad you found the one! 🙂
Faith says
This is truly my favorite cookie recipe! I have done this chocolate chips, walnuts, m&ms…..every time perfect! Thank you so much for sharing this!!
Karly says
Yay! Love hearing that! 🙂
Nancy says
I made this recipe but my dough does not turn out like seen in the video. It’s not dense. I am measuring the dry ingredients correctly but not sure what went wrong. Please advised.
Karly says
What does the dough look like?
Nancy says
The final dough looks liquid but did not form like the video. I put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes then baked it, which turned out perfect.
Karly says
Hi Nancy! The dough should be softer than the usual cookie dough, but certainly not liquid. Glad they turned out after hitting the fridge. 🙂
Melissa says
I laugh every time I make these truly perfect chocolate chip cookies thinking about only making 9 of them. I get 19-21 cookies from a batch each time!!!
Your children must be blissfully unaware of a “standard” cookie size… what a childhood!
Thank you for these FABULOUS cookies!
Karly says
Hahaha! They’re well aware that the cookies are giant, but they sure don’t complain about it! And they just eat 2 if I make them smaller. 😉
Lauren Winship says
Can you make the dough ahead of time and freeze it? I know that’s possible with most cookies, but have you tried it with these? Thanks!
Karly says
Yep, works great! 🙂
Shayelyn says
I just made these two days in a row for my husband and son to take to work. I’ve made them before and this time upped the white sugar to 1/2 cup (and I always pack the brown sugar). Since I had to divide a bag of chocolate chips in half and each half was less than a cup, I made up the difference with red and green mini M&Ms. I use an ice cream scoop and get 10 cookies. After I made these I made my “regular” chocolate chip cookies for home and because of their size, my daughter called those mini. My daughter is making sure I make these “Christmas” cookies for us, too!
Gina says
Something must be off. I followed the recipe exactly how it is and the cookies came out looking like cookie balls :-/
Karly says
Hi Gina! My guess is that you were heavy handed when measuring the flour. To measure properly, you want to spoon the flour into a dry measure and level it off with the back edge of a butter knife. If you scoop flour with the measure or shake it around to level it, you’ll end up with extra flour in the mixture.
Gina says
The way I measured the flour was by the actual weight of the amount on the ingredients list. So I put the 1 cup as 128 grams, the 2/3 cup as 85 grams. Maybe I’ll just have to do it the way you mentioned and see if they come out different.
Becki Gillenwater says
Me and my boys made your chocolate chip Christmas cookies a couple times and I was so excited when I found this recipe! Not sure why, but in the Christmas cookie recipe and also this recipe my cookie dough always ended up dry.. so I always have to add another egg. But with that adjustment these are the most amazing cookies ever! Thank you!
Karly says
Hi Becki! If the dough is dry, my guess is you’re just a bit heavy handed with the flour. You want to use a dry measure, spoon the flour in, and level it off for proper measuring. Don’t pack the flour in and don’t use a liquid measuring cup for dry ingredients. 🙂 But if adding an extra egg does the trick, that’s awesome too!